Good Morning. Welcome to The Wire’s daily news roundup. Each day, our staff gathers the top China business, finance, and economics headlines from a selection of the world’s leading news organizations.
Paid subscribers automatically have this list emailed directly to their inboxes every day by 10 a.m. EST. Subscribe here.
The Wall Street Journal
- Beijing Confronts a Smaller, Grayer China Dream — China is aging more rapidly than many expected, posing a serious challenge to its economic model.
- China Threatens Retaliation Against Ericsson if Sweden Doesn’t Drop Huawei 5G Ban — Swedish telecom-equipment maker’s role in China’s 5G build-out is at risk, Chinese state media says.
- Pentagon Backs off Xiaomi Blacklisting After Legal Challenge — Chinese tech giant joins several peers that have successfully won courtroom reprieves against Trump-era actions.
- China Weighs New Economic Envoy to U.S. — Senior Chinese official Liu He, who oversaw trade deal with Trump White House, might be replaced with younger Hu Chunhua.
- U.S. Tariffs Drive Drop in Chinese Imports — Levies now cover about $250 billion a year in goods—down from $370 billion—as U.S. companies shift purchases elsewhere.
- Tesla’s April Sales From China Were Mostly Exports — New figures raise questions about the strength of demand for its vehicles in the world’s largest auto market.
The Financial Times
- BlackRock wins approval to run wealth business in China — World’s biggest investment group is early mover in push to gain slice of $18.9tn market.
- Signs of inflation emerge as Chinese producer prices leap — Huge demand for raw materials and hopes of a global recovery have stoked a commodity price rally.
- Markets weigh prospect of new commodities supercycle — Prices from corn to copper are rallying as economies reopen but sceptics think it will be transient.
- How China is shaping the future of shopping — Country’s biggest ecommerce apps have developed mobile retail in a way that is now spreading.
- India emerges as China’s tech challenger with record run — Start-up valuations soar as pandemic boosts online services.
The New York Times
- China Wants to Boost Births. But It’s Wary of Losing Control. — Some local governments are allowing couples to have more children without penalties, but the ruling Communist Party seems reluctant to lift restrictions altogether.
Caixin
- China’s Central Bank Seeks to Calm Inflation Jitters — As the producer price index hits the highest in three and a half years, a PBOC analysis says imported inflation is ‘generally controllable’.
- Third Former Chairman of Jilin Trust Convicted of Bribery — Gao Fubo sentenced to 20 years for receiving millions of yuan in bribes as a fourth former chief awaits trial on corruption charges.
- U.S. Senate Committee Presses Companies to Comply with Rule Designed to Limit Supply Sales to Huawei — Huawei faces the risk of being unable to purchase data storage devices from three foreign hardware firms using U.S. technology, as Washington presses governments and companies around the world to give the Chinese tech giant the elbow.
- Pony.ai Receives Green Light to Run Autonomous Freight Business in Guangzhou — Attempts by Pony.ai to promote the use of its self-driving technology in cargo transportation appear to be paying off.
South China Morning Post
- China census: Xinjiang’s population jumps 18.3 per cent over past decade as sprawling XPCC conglomerate expands operations — The population in China’s far western province of Xinjiang grew more than 18 per cent over the past decade, one of the fastest growth rates among the nation’s 31 provincial level jurisdictions, according to the latest national census.
- China Big Tech shares take a beating ahead of latest quarterly earnings reports — Shares of China’s Big Tech companies continued to slump on Tuesday, ahead of their earnings report for the quarter ended March, as Beijing’s increased antitrust scrutiny added to investor concerns over high valuations and tightening monetary policy in the world’s second-largest economy.
Bloomberg
- Gold Wobbles After U.S. Inflation Comes in Higher Than Expected — Gold fluctuated after consumer price data showed the U.S. experienced higher-than-expected inflation in April, exacerbating concerns about rising prices.
- China’s Bond Defaults Pile Up at Fastest Pace on Record — Chinese corporations are defaulting on local bonds at the fastest pace on record, as authorities ramp up efforts to introduce more financial discipline and transparency in the world’s second-largest debt market.
- What’s Happening in the World Economy: China’s Inflation May Go Global — Hello. Today we look at whether Chinese factories are set to fan global inflation, Republican concerns over rising prices in the U.S. and the demographics of patent-applications.
- Taiwan Stock Crash Shows World Dangers of Too Much Leverage — Few things evoke fear in equity markets like a margin call. On Wednesday that fear turned into panic in Taiwan, offering another warning for the world on what can happen when leverage unwinds.
- After $260 Billion Slide, Alibaba Aims to Show the Worst Is Over — Has the storm passed for Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.?
Reuters
- Danone to sell potential $2 billion stake in China Mengniu — PARIS (Reuters) -French food group Danone, under pressure from investment funds over its shareholder returns, on Wednesday said it is selling a potential $2 billion stake in China Mengniu Dairy Company.
- Exclusive: China planning new crackdown on private tutoring sector – sources — China is framing tough new rules to clamp down on a booming private tutoring industry, aiming both to ease pressure on school children and boost the country’s birth rate by lowering family living costs, sources told Reuters.
Other Publications
- Foreign Affairs: The Long Arm of the Strongman — How China and Russia Use Sharp Power to Threaten Democracies.
- Nikkei Asian Review: US Army hunts for bases to deter China but logistics pose hurdle — Acting secretary wants role in finding new Southeast Asian partners via drills and diplomacy.
- Nikkei Asian Review: Why is China making a permanent enemy of India? — Beijing’s Ladakh aggression is driving New Delhi ever closer to Washington.
- Washington Post: China’s ‘wolf warrior’ diplomats like to talk tough — We analyzed 20 years of Chinese Foreign Ministry transcripts to track the increase in hostile language.
- Economist [Podcast]: “The biggest worry for the government right now is how quickly the birth rate seems to be falling” — YESTERDAY, CHINA unveiled the results of its first census in over a decade. The results are striking, if not surprising: the world’s largest country will soon stop growing.
